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California Bioresources Economy SummitSession 4: Learning from Biomass Supply Chains

Dr Karen Lapsley, Chief Scientific Officer

January 29, 2019 Berkeley, CA

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Scope of the California Almond Industry

1.07 million bearing acres spanning 500 miles (804 km), farmgate value $5.6 B

6,800 growers, 101 handler/processors

2018 crop forecast at 2.45 billion pounds, up 7.9%

97,000 jobs in the Central Valley; 104,000 statewide

$11 billion contribution to state GDP

Production• 100% of U.S. production• 68% export; 32% domestic• 80% of worldwide production

Exports by value• Top California agricultural export• Top U.S. specialty crop export

Sources: USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service, Pacific Region (NASS/PR)U.S. Department of Commerce, Foreign Trade StatisticsEconomic Impacts of the California Almond Industry, UC Ag Issues Center, 2014

Pruning

Dead Trees

.Orchard Removal

Sticl

2018 CALIFORNIA ALMOND BIOMASS ESTIMATION (3.4 MIL. MT, DM)Skins

Inedibles 0%

Hulls 46%

I

18%

Shells 20%

3Almond Board of California

REDUCE THE AMOUNT OF WATER USED TO GROW A POUND OF ALMONDS BY 20%

REDUCE DUST DURING ALMOND HARVEST BY 50%

- '■ ui1 r ;»•, -J ■ ■■

; ... ____ :_______________________J _

fumy

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ACHIEVE ZERO WASTEIN OUR ORCHARDS BY PUTTINGEVERYTHING WE GROW TO OPTIMAL USE

INCREASE ADOPTION OF ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY PEST MANAGEMENT TOOLS BY neo/

ALMOA

^5*

ORCHARD2025 GOALS

* ACHIEVE ZERO WASTE IN OURO ORCHARDS BY PUTTING EVERYTHING

WE GROW TO OPTIMAL USE

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Current Options Versus Future Solutions for Almond Biomass

• Dairy Feed Supplement (6 to 12% substitution rate)

• Co-gen plant• Orchard recycling• Open burning• Pile up• Dairy ranch bedding• Wood chip mulching• Give away

• Orchard recycling• Torrefied materials for plastic

applications, energy briquette• Thermochemical conversion for

energy, biochar, and activated carbon

• Absorbents and soil amendment• Controlled burning

• Increased substitution rate• Expanded market for dairy feed• Feed for poultry industry• High protein feed conversion by

insects and yeasts• Food grade applications• Soil solarization

Current Options Future Solutions

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Almond Biomass – LOTS of work needed to minimize waste and add value !!

19 projects funded to date: Hulls (8), shells (4), woody (2)General (5)…more to come!

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Australian Almond Industry also addressing biomass holistically

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CASE STUDY : From Almond Shells to Plastic Products – challenges to scale up research!!

Shells from Huller/Sheller

Torrefaction

Fine Grinding

Plastic Compounding

Grind or No Grind

Pallet or Slipsheet or Decking Companies

No commercial operations to torrefy agriculture waste in California. Only testing facilities offer torrefaction services.

Need to grind to fine particles (<100 microns) for better bonding with plastics, some facilities offer grinding services

Hard to mix torrefied shell powder with plastics in a single step to make final products, need to make composite pellets first. Decking lumber may be made from unground torrefied shells directly as its line has good mix with fine woody particles

Torrefied shells have potentials for many non-food contact plastic products

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Potential Applications of Torrefied Shells Being Explored

Pallets with TranPak, Fresno

Slipsheetswith Repsco, Oakdale

Planting Pots with FDS, LA

• Torrefied shells may be used as plastic filler and enhancer, black carbon replacer for recycled plastics

Temperature (°C) 250

Duration (min) 30

Torrefaction yield of solid (%) 50%

Torrefaction yield of vapor (%) 50%

Energy density before (MJ/kg) 19

Energy density after (MJ/kg) 25

Nitrogen purge before reaction (min) 20

Average density of shells, at 20 °C, 1 atm (kg/m3) 0.20

Density of milled shells/hulls, at 20 °C, 1 atm (kg/m3) 0.43

Torrefaction Process Parameters for Modeling

• Torrefaction of biomass involves heatingbetween 200 ~ 300 °C for 1 hour or less. Thisremoves most moisture and volatilecomponents to produce a fuel comparable tolow-rank coal.

• Biomass after torrefaction can be used as afiller in polymer composites

• According to USDA report, the fillerconcentrations were 5, 10, and 20% (w/w).The filler sizes were 163, 854, and 1545 um.

Technoeconomic Modelling Options: Satellite Processing Centers• In total 3 satellite centers (northern, central valley, southern) could process the whole industry’s 520,000 metric ton almond shells. The

annual production is projected to increase.

420 miles

• Feedstock is assumed to be delivered to the satellite storage near the plant, each storage/plant represents a 70-mile feedstock collection radius. Assuming 100% of the feedstock within that radius was available to the plant. The satellite plant size in present design is: 200,000 dry metric ton/year, (606 metric ton/day). With 12-months operation per year (24 hour/day).

Category Unit Whole industry Satellite process center

Yearly (MT/yr) 520,000 200,000

Yearly (lb/yr) 1,146,392,000 440,920,000

Daily (MT/day) 5,778 606

Daily (lb/day) 12,737,689 1,336,121

Hourly (MT/h) 722 25

Hourly (Ib/h) 1,592,211 55,671

Farm land coverage (acre) 1,330,000 200,000

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A NEW GREAT OPPORTUNITY! Trex is Interested in Using Almond Shells and TorrefiedShells in Their Decking and Fence Product Lines

• Trex is the world #1 decking brand and the inventor of alternative composite decking

• Using 50% woody materials and 50% plastics in their composite products

• Tested almond tree wood in their Oregon plant

• ABC staff convinced them to try almond shells for woody materials and torrefied shells to replace a portion of plastic

• They engaged with USDA Albany team for an agreement to generate 1200lbs of torrefied almond shells to run trials in their products …

• GOV’T SHUTDOWN has slowed down progress……..

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In Summary:

• CA almond industry is committed to finding higher value uses for almond biomass, for both economic and environmental reasons

• ABC is exploring a range of scalable technologies and interested to find more applied research partners. Technoeconomic analysis will be conducted to determine upscaling versus downscaling options

• CA agriculture and the almond industry specifically needs straight forward techniques to help determine which technologies will meet air quality requirements, especially for the San Joaquin Valley

• The carbon market is one example of how farmers can be economically rewarded for ecosystem services. ARB should carefully assess how such market mechanisms could help encourage the use of bio-based products that improve air quality in central California